It may seem that
Michael Pachter has cornered the market, but at least one other analyst has carved out a piece of the pie and made some predictions concerning console sales for 2008. His name is Daniel Ernst (of Hudson Square Research), and his revelation calls for the Wii to outsell the Xbox 360
and the PS3 combined, this year. According to Daniel, momentum is everything -- and Nintendo had no shortage of that in 2007. Citing sales figures for fiscal year 2008, and taking into account said momentum, Ernst feels that Nintendo is on track to sell 23 million Wiis -- to Microsoft's 11.2 million Xbox 360s, and Sony's 12.5 million PS3s:
"Microsoft got the jump on the industry with a one-year headstart, but nine months after its the launch, the Nintendo Wii overtook the Xbox 360 on a global basis. While the PS3, has struggled out of the gate, we note that since last fall, the console has been outselling the Xbox 360 in Europe, and in the first two months of this year has even outsold the Xbox 360 on its home turf, in the U.S. (In Japan, overtaking the Xbox 360 was almost immediate). With its strong slate of software scheduled for the coming year, we expect a material acceleration for the PS3 this year, but we believe the Wii will sell more than the PS3 and Xbox 360 combined this year."
Not bad for a product that everyone on the Internet claims not to play. Just one question, though: Just how is this supposed to happen if all we ever hear about are
Wii shortages? Last time I checked, you can't sell a lot of what you don't have. Does Nintendo have all their consoles holed up in some unmarked warehouse, just waiting to release them before the end of the next fiscal year, to fulfill the prophecy? I'm no analyst, but I just don't see that happening.
[Via GameDaily]
Contest:
10:46 AM on 04.04.2008
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WiiFit
::rimshot::
none that i can think of. my friends and i were wondering that too and we couldnt find anything.
I agree. I play mine every now and then but at this point I still play my PS2 and PSP more than the Wii. Come June when the MGS4 PS3 bundle is released I fear that the Wii will get no playtime by me at all...
I should have held out for the next Nintendo system to utilize good graphics and a non gimmicky controller. I have stopped buying games that won't allow me to use the classic controller as an option.
until Monster Hunter 3 or a new Kingdom Hearts pops up I think I'm done for a while
I don't hear any games people are really splooging over currently except MK Wii, Wii Fit, and MGS4?
I'm sure people will jump in with more titles but seems kind of like a trick question... there just aren't a lot of great games coming out despite last year supposedly being one of the 'best year for games' ever?
GTA IV
Takeshi has no Wii.
Had you considered that the reason there are shortages are because they keep selling out? Forgive me if this is a leap beyond rationality.
Also, the wii's a darn good console. Admittedly not as strong in local singleplayer or online multiplayer as its competitors, but it really can't be beat in local multiplay. Fuck the begrudgers, if they don't like their wiis, they can still get a good price on ebay for them.
Wii just doesnt have the 3rd party support it needs. IMO Mario Kart is still living off the accliam from the original, but its just the same old stuff in new packaging. Nintendo is in DIRE need of original new content. more, no more heroes (pardon the irony) originality.
360 and PS3 have almost closed the market of multiformat and just turned it dual format. I dont see call of duty 4 rainbow vegas 2 on wii as it it just restricts SO much of its userbase.
360 has the userbase, PS3 has the userbase. and they can freely get about online via the game community nintendo has more restrictions than microsoft.
Grandad Nintendo. We have respect you raised us in my childhood, but your just not apart of our lives anymore though we do come for a visit every now and again. XD
nintendo = ages 3 - 17
PS = 10+
xbox 360 = 15+
honestly viva pinata and banjo kazooie are piss poor attempts by xbox to reel in that kid factor but in honesty its easily meant for 15 +.
It's not a leap at all, if the shortages aren't artificial in nature. You know, by holding back production to keep demand higher than it really is. Just humor me for a second on this, and allow me to contrast what you are saying.
Nintendo as a company, is a master at making money. The last thing they want it to have a ton of Wiis out there, just sitting on the shelf -- should consumers suddenly decide that the Xbox 360 or PS3 now offers a greater experience. Just something to think about...
@ Rifter - I don't think the Wii is going to get more interesting, it's going to get replaced.
Me and my girlfriend both feel that we wasted our money on the Wii and besides No More Heroes as being a fun playable game I feel violated as a consumer, right up der bum.
Bicycles will out-sell karaoke machines.
apples will outsell oranges.
(And for what it's worth, my gaming is on Wii/GC bc, PS2, and DS/GBA bc. Cheapass gaming FTMFW.)
Or a mindless fanboy?
Also I mouch plenty of 360 times off of my friend's who own one.
"I believe that x-system will sell better and if you don't that's because you're a y-system fanboy!" is not an arguement.
This whole attack on "fanboys" has become a fucking witch hunt. Blindly and arbitrarily supporting a system isn't as bad as blindly and arbitrarily attacking anyone who supports a system.
I can't picture Americans buying the Wii fit. The waggle controls worked great for Wii sports, and people took to it because it was in the familiar shape of a controller. But who's going to buy a $90 scale?
It's not even about supprting a system for these people. It's also about blindly and arbitrarily attacking someone who simply doesn't happen to own the same system.
I'm sick of the narrow-minded PS3/XB360 jackasses in this place acting like owning a Wii (and only a Wii as a console) means that you're not "hardcore"? O RLY? My PC setup will blow any console out of the water. Guaranteed. And it gets plenty of CoD4, Bioshock, BF2142, and other FPS usage.
But to listen to the idiots on this site, "OH!! But it's not on a console!! What? You're only console is a Wii? Oh, you're not hardcore!" Yeah, whatever. My hardcore stuff is done on my PC. My lighter stuff is done on the Wii ... if "No More Heroes" can be called "lighter stuff".
Alternatively, if you don't have a gaming PC, I guess it's Wii + 360, as you basically get the same thing.
Those two seem like the obvious winning setups at the moment, and of course that makes people who inexplicably purchased a PS3 angry? :)
I don't claim to be hardcore, so I'm sure I don't have any authority on the matter, but the Wii is a gaming platform just like the rest of them. Its library is a little different, but in the end you're still playing video games, and they're still a bucket of fun.
Well, here's a little info from my side of the retail counter. I work for GameStop, and my store is considered "low traffic" so we get one, maybe two shipments of Wii a week, which is 3-6 systems. Higher traffic stores may get 12-18 a week. On average we have about 300 Wiis in the area per week, and that's not counting Wal-Mart, Circuit City, Best Buy or any other outlets that also sell Wiis. We sell out of those 300+ within a day, at most, sometimes in a few hours. That's a lot of Wiis. And it's been like this for over a year.
Now, I know a buddy in Seattle who says he can walk into any retailer practically and find a Wii so maybe it's just my area, but I will definitely attest to the popularity/shortage situation here in Denver/Springs.
Here's hoping for a huge announcement or something.
Also, @tincow, dogen, and Agent Moo
Rock Band IS coming to the Wii... It's just gonna be the crappy PS2 version (I still don't understand WHY, but oh well). But I plan on picking up Wii Fit just for the possible Skate support. :P
We'll have to wait until E3 in order to find out what big new games Nintendo will be announcing and whether or not they'll be coming out this year. Although, according to Reggie, at least one big title should be ready in time for the holiday. Of course, it may end up being delayed.
I only hav a Wii and I mosly have hardcore games them being Metroid Prime 3, No More Heroes and Zelda:TP. I'm not sure if people consider Smash Bros to be hardcore or not.. although I do play that game every day.I'm looking forward to Mario Kart, Okami, Oboro Muramasa Youtouden, Wiiware, Disaster, Sadness, Retro Studio's next project and hopefully a new and proper Kirby and Starfox game.
Of course, talking about these first-party big releases is just Nintendo screwing smaller third-party publishers. They really can't win around these parts. :)
Xbox 360: The best third-party games but its first-partt games are pretty pathetic. I mean, other than Halo, the 360 really doesn't have much to offer at the moment.
PS3: Sony is pretty much in the middle. Still, the 360 seems to have better third-party support at the moment ,but there will soon be a good improvement in the PS3's first party games with titles such as MGS4 coming out.
Unfortunately, the Wii is in a slightly different situation than the PS3 and Xbox 360. For starters, there has yet to be a third-party game that looks nearly as good as Metroid Prime or Super Mario Galaxy. In addition, there's only about a handful of third-party games that use the Wii controls properly. Secondly, most developers are not making multiplatform games for the Wii and even the ones that the Wii has are either ports or watered down versions of the Xbox 360 and PS3 games.Lastly, there's the whole issue of publishers taking advantage of the Wii's cheap game development costs and developers being lazy and foolish for not making good quality games and using the Wii controls properly. Lastly, the Wii has the least amount of hardcore and mature games of the three home consoles. Also, Nintendo's wi-fi service isn't all that good right now and many gamers and developers are frustrated by the lack of voice chat and the inconvenience of friend codes.
Man, I used to really love Nintendo, but I just can't get behind them on this one. Or maybe it's just sour grapes because I can't get my hands on a retail priced Wii...
Oh and ... Force Unleashed!
On the subject of voice chat, is it really that important? Most of the comments I hear/read about Live is that it's full of fratboys, 10-year-olds, and racists. Anonymous voices spewing profanities can stay out of my Brawl matches, thank you very much, and if it saves bandwidth/cuts lag to keep them out of everyone's experience then it seems like the smart choice to me. Online play is slower than local already, and giving people the option to slow it further by voice chatting would inconvenience the multitude who don't really give a damn.
The Wii sells fast, but I don't think it's any secret that people who own the Wii have the fewest games for it. I myself ran into this issue. I very wanted a wii, I got one at release. And since then, I have spent months upon months not buying any new games for it. And what games I did have, quickly wore out on the new style.
On the 2nd note before I get some anti-sony boys/gals against me. I simply say this because of the upcoming titles for the PS3 versus that of the 360. People should know what's being released this year for the console if they truly care to know. And if you do not care to know, then I simply say this. The only winner in 08 is the console you enjoy. In that, there is no loser. There is no higher for the gaming world except for what you are enjoying.